It is official. The biggest causative agents for global warming all over the world are industrial and auto emissions. The situation is no different in Kerala as well. Kochi, the business hub of this state is infamous for its staggering number of vehicles that push through the bad roads, causing terrible traffic congestion and emissions. Cochin has one of the highest car densities in India, which is ten times more than the national average. Most of the vehicles on the city roads do not pass the emission standards and one can see thick plumes of dark smoke emanating from the tail as these vehicles of all shapes and sizes wait at the traffic signals! Blame it on adulterated fuel ( many drivers mix additives to petrol to increase the mileage!) or lure for profits- the fact is that the damage goes unnoticed!
What we need now are hybrid cars that run on battery. Till these are ready to hit the roads at prices that are affordable to you and me, the only option is to use the available resources sensibly. Public transport is the best mode of transport to commute; if you find it too slow or crowded; ( Cant we run more Volvo buses at rates that are affordable to the common man?) the next best option would be the shared private cars. Yes; you heard it right. People who stay in adjacent flats and share the work space can very well share their vehicles with their colleagues! However, the irony is that most of them prefer to turn a blind eye. Is it that we have become too narrow minded that we do not feel like picking up our next door neighbor or is it that we wish to be at our own pace and do not want to reschedule our timings for another person? In either case, if we all could make this small adjustment, it would be a big step in the right direction!
So, next time when you see someone from your gated community, ram that brake and offer a lift! It can save the world! By taking turns, we all can save fuel and money; above all, foster friendship and good will:) If your work place happens to be near your residence , you would be one of those few lucky souls who could tuck in a work out regimen into the day if you decide to chuck out the car and walk back home from work! As they say necessity is the mother of invention and the time has come for all of us to put on our thinking caps to come up with novel ideas to save this world from being a cauldron of burning gases.
Let us admit it; Keralites have a penchant for the gas guzzling luxury cars, which they buy to satisfy their vanity rather than to meet their needs. These air conditioned road rulers with just one person behind the wheel are not just adding up to the congestion of city roads but are also adding up to the green house effect. Increasing the taxes of luxury cars could help bring down the numbers to some extent; better still, the city administration can bring out a law that allows a person to take out the car only on alternate days as is the system in many foreign countries. The alarm bells are in the air. And if we choose not to do anything now, there might not be a second chance or a tomorrow!
Pulling the worst poses known to man on Splash Mountain, Disneyland, CA
Los Angeles, Universal Studios and Disneyland
Having stayed overnight in a northern part of Los Angeles called Van Nuys; Birmingham RV park $63 per night (very expensive in our opinion), Universal Studios beckoned. We arrived at 8.30, far too early for the park opening at 10am but managed to get an annual pass for the same price as a day ticket. Useful considering I’m travelling until December 2010!
Universal Studios – Very different to Paris and allegedly Florida, this flavour of park is home to actual film sets such as War of the Worlds, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Psycho and the TV show Desperate Housewives. With many rides including Jurassic Park water ride and The Mummy roller coaster, to name the better ones, combining the theme park and studio tour capped off a good day of entertainment. Worth a visit at $69 for the day.
Los Angeles – Was very disappointing. Where is the glamour? Where is the shining, glitzy Hollywood Blvd star trail we here about? Hollywood Blvd makes the Blackpool Golden Mile look up-market, trendy and fashionable. Don’t get me wrong, the stars on the floor is great but then place tacky bars, shops and a continual harassment to visit the stars homes for the same price as a deposit on a house and the experience becomes marred. Homelessness was obvious, sheer lack of up-keep was obvious and a police patrol every minute showed crime was obvious. I’d never rush to go back despite driving through Bel Air along Sunset Blvd and witnessing where all the American tax dollars are being spent. We hired a car for LA to the tune of $80 to drive through, it’d be virtually impossible in the RV.
Disneyland – Woeful. Am I 9 years old anymore? No. I’d find more thrills in a packet of cornflakes. $72 was the fine, spend a further $25 and you receive a 1-day park hopper. We did just this and popped over to Disney California Adventure park located opposite Disneyland pleased us no end. Thrills galore including, a roller coaster that make grown kids scream, water rides, 3D shooting experience. When I have children I’d love to bring them back to Disneyland to see their faces light up at each Disney character, but without children the only option is to skip this park.
Where did we stay for Disneyland?
Disneyland is located in Anaheim, southern part of Los Angeles and having a motorhome we set down at Anaheim Resort RV Park. Offering a Jacuzzi, heated pool and a $4 shuttle bus to Disneyland for a meagre $61 a night. 3 nights here helped us rejuvenate before Las Vegas.
Cystic Fibrosis related problems?
NO! My, it’s such a relief to say this two lettered word. The nebuliser cable arrived after a hugely appreciated forwarding from Jim and Marian Black to us in Anaheim – thank you so much. The nebuliser works and I can finally lasso with the cable again… no, no just kidding wouldn’t want the hospital to think I’m playing conkers or herding cattle with it.
The cough has subsided to a more than normal, but acceptable level and the cold has disappeared. I hope it stays this way for the rest of the trip.
Currently, I am preoccupied by this question posed to me by a good friend:
“What do you think about after you drop me off and drive away after spending the weekend with me?”
I was caught off guard by this question. I had picked him up from a party and he was clearly intoxicated yet he posed this in all seriousness. I stammered for a moment, and he repeated the question. Not sure how to respond, feeling as if this was some sort of trap, I said, “Well, I dunno.”
He didn’t let it drop at that. He pushed for a better answer. Finally, I said, “Well, I spend all weekend with you so when it comes to Sunday morning, I find I have quite a long to-do list I have to…” He cut me off there saying, clearly agitated by this response “Alright, got my answer.”
“Wait!” I said, “you didn’t let me finish.” I scrambled to try and right my supposed error, “After I drop you off, I need to think about my to-do list so I can start organizing and planning for when I get to see you next.”
He just turned up the music in response (Limp Bizkit’s ‘Faith’ – “Well, I guess it would be nice if I could touch your body…”). “Whatever” was all he said.
After I dropped him off the next morning, and I drove away, I began thinking about the question some more. As I pondered, I noticed the sun rising in my rear-view mirror, a bright burnt orange sphere like you’d see in a Monet painting. For a moment, all of the confusion of our recent conversations did not matter, and then I saw a bat flutter underneath an underpass and I immediately thought, “Oh cool. He would have loved to see that, I’ll have to text him about that later.” Then I realized why my answer had been wrong. I had lied. I had the both scary and exciting realization that he had slowly become the context for all of my thoughts, and all he had wanted, and hoped for, was for this confession, for this admittance of some sort of feeling beyond that of just friends. I had a moment of clarity as a watched that sun rise in my rear-view mirror: I had fallen in love with my best friend, and my best friend loved me back. Needless to say, I cannot wait for next weekend.
Last evening, Lady of the House and I decided to drive into the countryside to have a meal in the Rob Roy Inn at Buchlyvie (if you don’t know the village, don’t even try to pronounce it!)
The weather was beautiful, and we took the winding road through the gorgeous Blane Valley with the low sun glinting off the Campsie Hills. Other car-owners had obviously decided to take the same route and we all meandered along well within the speed limit.
It was very pleasant and enjoyable, until, suddenly there was this tremendous roar from behind and to my utter amazement, there were three ton-up boys, on exceedingly powerful motor-bikes, accelerating past me, on the wrong side of the road, on a blind corner! There were no more than two seconds between each of them and they cut-in and out as they weaved between cars, pulling-in as coaches and lorries came towards them, with sickengly little distance to spare!
So why do they go out on these wild sprees?….is it to terrorise motorists……is it to show-off about the power of their bikes….is it for an adrenalin kick?
It certainly can’t be to admire the scenery….or to maintain the quiet of the countryside……or to endear themselves to other road users…..or to encourage others to take up the sport….or to minimise their global footprint….or to show respect for the sanity of motorists…
Can someone please explain why I should abstain from driving them off the road!….so, if you are a biker, please pay those of us who keep to the law, a little bit more respect!
Nebraska-born in 1886, Earl Cooper became a star just as the Golden Age of auto racing was dawning. Cooper’s illustrious racing career, in which he racked-up three National Championships (1913, 1915 & 1917) and 11 top 10 points finishes, all started in 1904– in an ironic and bittersweet twist.
It was 1904, and Cooper was on the West Coast working as a mechanic at a Maxwell auto dealership. Cooper was bitten by the racing bug, but when he appealed to the Maxwell dealership for sponsorship in a San Francisco race, he was refused. Turns-out his own boss was competing in the same race and did not welcome the friendly competition. So Cooper scoffed at the dealership’s snub, and somehow was able to convince a kind old woman to let him enter her brand new Maxwell in the race. Cooper soundly beat his boss– and just as quick, found himself unemployed. With nothing left to lose, he went on a racing tear, up and down the West Coast, where he was at times unstoppable.
Cooper joined the Stutz racing team in 1912, and just one year later went on to win the National Championship– racking up 2,610 points. Cooper dominated the scene that year, winning five of the eight major road races, along with one 2nd place finish.
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Earl Cooper and his riding mechanic in the Stutz car. Picture taken at Indianapolis 500 qualifying in 1919. (Indianapolis Motor Speedway photo. Noel Allard collection)
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In 1913, Cooper’s Hell-bent rival, Barney Oldfield, was driving for the Mercer team. The two battled fast and furious in a battle of skill and will on the track–
Cooper and Oldfield would run head-to-head at the Santa Monica Road Race, held on an eight-mile macadam course near the ocean. Oldfield blasted away from the starter’s flag and held a sizeable lead, but Cooper passed Tetzlaff for second and began running Oldfield down. With a 4-minute lead over Oldfield, one of Cooper’s tires blew out and he had to coast into the pits. As his riding mechanic struggled to get the wheel off, Oldfield roared past. Cooper jumped out of the driver’s seat and wrenched the wheel off, the tire was changed and the car back on the track to begin running down Oldfield once more. In his exuberance to stay ahead, this time Oldfield blew a tire and bumped into the pits as Cooper whisked past and on to the checkered flag as the winner.
On September 9, 1913, Cooper and Oldfield again met head-to-head on a 3-mile paved track that circled the town of Corona, California. Cooper, after experiencing the tire problem at Santa Monica, had cannily practiced on the course to find what maximum speed he could drive in order to not make any tire stops at all. He determined that if he drove 75 mph. for the entire race, he could do just that. Oldfield, hell-bent-for-leather, predicted that the race average would go to 90 mph. Oldfield set the pace from the start, over Cooper, Tetzlaff, DePalma and Spencer Wishart. He clocked an awesome 98 mph on one lap, but the track had started to break up from the pounding it was taking from the heavy cars. Oldfield burst a tire and Cooper inherited the lead. Oldfield was back on the track and again at speed when again, a young spectator ran onto the track in front of him. Oldfield swerved to avoid the lad and crashed heavily, injuring several people and himself. Cooper won again and would go on to take his first AAA National Championship.
–Noel Allard
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Earl Cooper in action at the start of a race in 1925, Laurel, Maryland.
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1915 was another banner year, as Cooper battled back from health issues that had kept him largely sidelined in 1914. He won the first race of 1915 at Point Loma, California, then was forced to take time off from racing due to his health for the early part of the season. He scored points at Indianapolis with a 4th place finish, along with another 4th place finish at Maywood, IL, and two 2nd place finishes at Tacoma, WA. Cooper also managed 2nd in a 50-lap invitational on the Chicago board track. He followed that with a win in one of two events at Elgin, IL, and at a 500-mile race on the cement speedway at Fort Snelling, MN, outside Minneapolis. He also won three 100-mile non-points-awarding races in the West to close the season.
On May 26, 1925, Earl Cooper became the first driver to exceed 110 mph at the famed speedway in Indianapolis when he drove his Junior 8 to 110.728 mph in an official qualification lap. The record didn’t last long. He was eclipsed later in the day by Harry Hartz with a speed of 112.994 mph and again the same day by Peter DePaolo at 114.285 mph in a Duesenberg.
He also set a four-lap qualifying record at 110.487 mph in 1925, but was topped by Hartz, DePaolo and eventual pole sitter Leon Duray in a Miller at 113.196 mph.
Earl Cooper’s impressive racing career lasted until 1927. But retirement did not mean an end to racing– Cooper spent several years as a team manager. Along with his loyal mechanic over the years, Reeves Dutton, they built three front-drive Cooper racing cars, one of which competed at Indianapolis into the 1940s. Earl Cooper died on Oct. 22, 1965 in Atwater, CA, at the age of 79.
This weekend I’ll be staying with my older sister, to look after my nieces while she’s at work. I should be back by Tuesday. She doesn’t have internet, so unless I can pick up someone else’s signal, you probably won’t hear from me for a few days.
I can’t say today was better than previous days. I was almost hit by a car this afternoon. I went to cross the street as I was leaving campus, in a crosswalk mind you. One foot was in the crosswalk, and as I was about to take another step, this white car cuts right in front of me. I didn’t see the car because it came from behind. But if I had taken just one or two more steps, the car could have hit me.
I spent the afternoon with my brother. He got a call at work (he works at Gamestop), and it was hilarious. A woman called in to ask about some games, but didn’t specify for which system. He asked three times. For the rest of the time I was there, his coworkers and a friend teased him about it.
His coworker called the store and asked about the games, while he was standing in front of the register. He then told his wife she should get everyone in her office to call GS and ask for the games, without saying for which system. Even my brother’s friend called in and did it. Oh, he was pissed.
Later I ran into a friend from German class while I was waiting for my mom at work. I also got to see a guy I hadn’t seen in a while. He used to be a demo for Sam’s, but once they brought in an outside company, he became a ‘Zoner’. It was nice to talk to both of them.
I have at least 30 themes for my 365-sketch challenge. That’s a good start. For now though, I need to pack and call it a night.
I have had several dreams in the past week, but alas, none were remembered by the time I woke up in the morning. I only know I had them.
However, last night made up for that. it was a blinder. I was at work in the lab. for some reason, there were creatures/zombies outside yet we were continuing on with our work as normal. I do remember telling Gareth that I had met the sister of one of the peole he worked with before I started who got fired for being really sloooooow (this actually happened yesterday evening). Apparently Jeremy (also known as jezebel cos he was so weird) now works at Sainsburies. anyway, after this chatwith Gareth with predictable responses I went into the prep room. this had become a combination store room/sweet shop. I know therewere other bits i this part of the dream where I wandered around the lab and did things, but I don’t remember it. The next thing I know is that I am looking for ice cream in the freezer in the prep room when I find out that the zombie creatures have invaded the lab and I am trying to hide in some kind of wheelie bin/box with a lid. Apparently this worked because, while they wandered around the prep room, they didn’t get me. I don’t know what happened to the others.
The dream shifted then, and I found myself in some sort of building with a crazy old man. He even had the crazy einstein hair. he was also quite fat. However he did offer to take me with him inhis car (which my brain identifies as some kind of ex military vehgicle…possibly a tank – only it has wheels, and does’t look a /thing/ like a tank – much more like a car. There was more to the dream, but I don’t remember it beyond seeing the craz guy driving the tank/car.
Haven’t you always dreamed of yourself driving, with wind blowing through your hair? But not too much wind because you want a sunroof, not a convertible. Well kids, here. is. your. chance.
I’m selling Blanca, or as one likes to call her, Joan Jetta. She’s a 2009 VW Jetta, white with tan leather interior, heated seats, sunroof, 6 disc changer, satellite radio, and many other amazing features such as a fold down back seat, great for loading up all kinds of gear. She wants to go home with you…badly. Please don’t disappoint her, and tell me you need such a beautiful addition to your family. She has 20,000 miles of love to her credit, and she would love to give you many more happy miles.
Seriously, let me know if you are interested. Tell your mom. Tell your friends. Tell your enemies. Just help me get Blanca to a new, loving home.
The next time you’re pulled over for speeding, you might be surprised by what you see in the rearview. Ford recently unveiled its replacement for the Crown-Victoria-based Police Interceptor — and it’s a Taurus.
“Ford first introduced its police package in 1950 and today the Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor is the industry leader,” explains Jalopnik. “The automaker’s dominated the streets to the point that over the last five years, Ford’s controlled more than 70% of the patrol cars sold. … Unfortunately, the Crown Vic’s Panther-platform’s getting a little long in the tooth
read more http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_content_landing_pages/1363/ford-introduces-new-taurus-based-police-car/
The womanizing, vicodin addicted jungle cat will make his return to a well landscaped field at Augusta to hit balls with metal sticks on April 8th. Nacho Donut is working on getting a press pass to cover the event. If Tiger had not been married, he would be considered a pimp but since he was married he is considered the biggest asshole on Earth. He has obviously made some big mistakes but getting married was his biggest. If you want to bang whores across the country that is your right but
The first dream was a shortish clip. I was in a research team of myself another woman and a man who was leading the party. I felt like I had been granted special permission to be on the trip. We were up on this humongous glacier/ice wall (and it was a wall – at least a mile high – the fields were all tiny and patchwork when I took a peek over the edge) drilling for ice cores. It was /very/ cold up there, we were all in the big Michelin Man high-vis puffy jackets. Our corer appears to be a plastic tube with an odd attachment and I’ve no idea how it worked (If I did I would make a killing, because all that was needed was body weight and it cut through the ice like a hot knife through butter). Our base is near to the edge of the ice wall – as I mentioned I had a peek over the edge (and wasn’t frightened or anything either). The ice is very blocky with a regularish pattern of square and oblong pieces with crevasses surrounding them. The crevasses were filled with ice crystals. The crystals resembles those you would find in a geode or a rock thin section where there has been cracking and re mineralization) so it was perfectly safe to step on and climb over the crevasses. The tops of the blocks were likewise encrusted with these crystals. These crystals are dangerous, and crunched underfoot. The man in charge of the team takes the first core from an area where the ice is completely white, then he lets me try and shows me how. We are studying the variation in the ice, though the reason is now lost to me. The leader directs me to take my core over an area where the ice is white with a broad blue stripe running through it. When we retire for the night after pulling up the core, we sleep in a blocky hollow. I get ill, the air is thin and is making my lungs fill with water and it’s coold. All the blankets are thrown over me but it is not having much effect, they eventually cover me over with their bodies too. I recover. Then the dream faded.
Second dream was odder. And in it I was a boy called Jason. He had dark hair and was fairly slender, no muscle. He seemed to be about 12-14.
It starts with a car chase. The car is white and/or red and Jason is chasing a boy who has committed a crime that he has been blamed for. He is being followed by police and a station wagon typed car with his colleagues in it.
Something happens and the car crashes. It cartwheels and ‘Jason’ is thrown from the car, hit, and then rolls over the snow covered embankment and then lies still on his side. I can’t see any blood but he is still. His back is facing me. Most of the police cars fly past chasing the other car. Others stop by the crash. A man gets out of the station wagon, pulls something out of the boot, where I can see the TV screen with a woman who I ‘know’ to be his partner (and who also happens to be in labour in the hospital) She is giving directions to the guy and both are calling Jason’s name loudly and urgently. He isn’t responding. The man rushes over to him with his kit. Rolls the boy. The last thing I see before the dream shifts is his face. It’s white. Eyes open – he looks shocked. He’s dead.
I know that there is some time travel involved in this dream, because at the same time that he is lying there dead, be is also in a hospital watching the car chase. He’s gotten some small sort of injury that requires a visit to the hospital. The police burst in and try to arrest him for a crime another boy committed (but I didn’t do it! He calls out to them). He has seen the car chase on TV and realises that he has come back in time to stop something. Now he has got to do it all over again, and NOT get himself killed.
A police pursuit of a car ended in a crash on East Lemington Avenue in Penn Hills early Sunday. The chase began when a police officer attempted to stop the vehicle because one occupant resembled a person wanted in a homicide investigation. The driver off the vehicle attempted to flee from the police but crashed a short time later. Both occupants of the vehicle reportedly sustained serious injuries.
From a personal injury attorney perspective, this accident presents a unique problem for the injured passenger of the vehicle. Most, if not all automobile insurance policies exclude coverage when the driver of the vehicle crashes and causes injury while attempting to run from the police. It is possible that the passenger may be able to make a claim against his own uninsured motorist coverage if he in fact has does have such coverage. A thorough review of his insurance policy is necessary to determine whether the coverage would be available. Attorney for uninsured motorist claims.
Just finished reading an AP article written by Elliot Spagat about the Toyota Prius that James Sikes claimed had suffered from unintended acceleration on a California highway. It was an interesting read to say the least!
According to the report investigators from Toyota and the federal government could not replicate the problem. Also reported was that the back up system that is supposed to return the engine to idle speed when the brake and gas pedals are pressed at the same time worked as designed.
Wonder how Sikes could drive with the gas and brake pedals depressed and hit over 90 miles an hour with the engine at idle speeds? Seems kind of fishy to me!
Another interesting item in the article was not that the front brake pads had been worn away, but looked like they had worn away from being appied intermittently. Would it have taken Mr. Sikes 20 minutes of highway driving and intermittent brake application to wear out the front brakes? Sounds plausible to me. Once the trooper showed up he put the car in neutral and shut the engine off. Yep, it took a whole 20 minutes to do something the 911 operator told him to do 20 minutes earlier. IMHO this guy was out to capitalize on Toyota’s recall and planned the entire event.
If you have time to do some additional research on the web you might come across a story about Mr. James Sikes is behind on payments to Toyota for the lease of his Prius. I don’t know if these stories are true or not, or if they are the same gentleman, but if they are, they open up a whole new can of worms. Did Mr. Sikes want to get out from under the lease payments by staging the runaway Prius event? Who really knows what the truth is except Mr. Sikes. If he did stage this event he should be prosecuted to the maximum extent provided by the law. Endangering other drivers and the trooper that responded to his call is not something to be taken lightly. I only hope that this was not a publicity stunt, but have my doubts.
First I want to apologize for not blogging for a couple of days. I have been so busy with trying to finish an assignment for college I haven’t really had time for anything else, thankfully the assignment has been handed in and I can relax….. Not completely there’s another 3 on the go at the minute, plus we’re getting a new assignment at some point next week but it’s not all work and no play.
I love college and I’m getting to do something I enjoy. Yes, it’s a lot of work but it’ll be worth it in the long run. It’s been 2 weeks since I applied for two jobs, I haven’t heard anything unfortunately.. Not too sure how long it takes for them to get back to you as these are the first jobs I’ve EVER applied for. I know, shocking isn’t it? Even more so as I’m 20 this year *gasp*
I guess, I’ll just have to keep applying until someone gives me a job. Might have a better chance in the summer holidays but until I get a job it doesn’t look like I’m getting any closer to buying a car in time for my birthday. Although, saying that it’s not til the end of September so I’ve still got plenty of time…. Right? :S
Saying that, I’m babysitting for a friend on Tuesday night. Really looking forward to it as I’ve not seen her and her boys since way before Christmas. It’ll be nice to see them again plus she said she’d pay me… Though I doubt it’ll be much but it’s something and as Tesco says; EVERY LITTLE HELPS
Well I’ll stop there. There wasn’t really a point to this blog post. Although while I’m here I want to say hello and thank you to my 86 visitors. Who ever you are, please leave comments. Let me know what you think of my blog. What you want to see me blog about etc
I’m waiting for an electric car I can buy. I don’t think any of the ones in the works fit the bill… so sorry Prius plug in hybrid, Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf, Mini E, Tesla S, etc, etc… my problems?
1) They are too small! That’s a problem because of a) carpooling… I need to be able to haul at LEAST 5 kids to and from school. We’re talking mini-van or SUV I guess. b) safety. Check the numbers at HLDI.org. A prius is still about twice as dangerous in terms of injury and death rates as our Saab 9-5. I want to save the planet, but I’m not will to risk my family. This is no joke… as I’m sure you know… the chances of dying in a car crash are in the neighborhood of 1/8000 a year or 1/5244 in 2 years
2) They are too quiet! I am hoping this gets resolved somehow, but I am just not willing to risk killing a pedestrian because they didn’t hear my car coming. Apparently folks will be figuring out what to do about this at some point, but until then, I am seriously considering sitting on the sidelines.
OK, so what other problems did I forget? There are other (non?) issues, … There are probably answers to these…
1) Effective MPG hurts a bit (maybe only a bit?) because there is no waste heat to heat the car in the winter. And it’s cold here.
2) Cradle-to-cradle environmental impact / full-life-cycle of the cars: Are the batteries a concern or not? I heard that there are some crazy rare earth metals that are needed for them that is decimating china, etc. NYTIMES My guess here is that it pulls down the green-ness a bit, but maybe overall still worth it vs internal combustion engines.
3) Is this is a solution for everybody? Can the electric-grid handle it? My answer here is that it seems like if people install several kW solar arrays on their roofs, they might do quite well for covering their commuter miles at least.
4) We are already a 1-car family. So it’s a little odd to buy a second car. Would we then sell our other one? But then what about long trips that are outside the range of an electric car? Rent?
5) Bang for the buck. Is buying a brand new car to cut our fossil fuel use in half a good use of money vs other ways of “saving the planet”? (we already average 26MPG in our Saab 9-5… closer to 30+ on the highway or local carpool if I hypermile…)
Maybe it’s because I come from a family of car-crazy mechanics, but as I was brushing my hair the other day in between chasing kids I noticed some new white hairs…and thought “Those must be my racing stripes!”
We’ve been thinking a lot about unity in the Christian family. Don’t have any great insights yet, except maybe “Can’t we all just get along?”
Hello and welcome back! Today I (Erin) had my first classes at a private kindergarten. These classes are still part of my contract with Aston, but are fulfilled in another location to fill extra hours. I got up nice and early to greet students as they arrived to the school at 8am. For the first half-hour my job was simply to stand in front of the school and say “Good morning” and “Give me a high five!” to kids as their parents dropped them off. I think the general idea was to impress parents that their children’s English classes would be taught by a real English-speaker. I was very happy with this arrangement, as it’s getting warmer and is much easier than running around a room with flashcards.
It should be known that this school is very swanky. Parents drive up in their BMWs, Audis and yes, even Hummers to drop their kids off. This status parade s is a car company’s dream, because it is clearly the size and price of a car that is most important. (The wealthiest also made sure 8’s were included on their license plates.) I find the contrast between the dirty, run-down look of houses, shops and restaurants with flashy, new, bright cars to be quite interesting. I guess a car is more personal and portable, and thus works better as a status symbol or representation of “face.” Also, I guess I am just more accustomed to homes being a major status symbol, so when you live in a country of over a billion and property is scarce, the appeal of a car is even greater. I had to laugh when I saw a suped-up VAN with rims and leather interior, because the whole point of owning such a car is that it’s just BIG. Unlike most of China, only one student arrived on the back of a bicycle. (Did I mention, parents do NOT get out of the car, a young teacher lifts their kid out of the seat and escorts them to class.)
The inside of the school was incredible; nicer than any building I have seen thus far in China. I have attached pictures, but it was decked out with couches, bright colors and very clean! It definitely made me question whether the “strict function” of things is really as important an ideal as the Chinese say, or whether money may change this equation. Either way, I respect a good combination of form and function! The classes were pretty standard, I taught 4: 1/2 hr sessions to groups of about 15-20 three to five year olds. One or two in each class were incredibly good at picking up the vocabulary, which was exciting. I think it’s fun teaching the little ones, but they are about done after 20 minutes…and so am I. There are only so many ways you can go over 5 vocabulary words.
There were also two other English-speaking teachers who were quite characters. I have heard that there is somewhat of a prejudice against Filipinos and gays in China, but these two men defied both odds! They have actually been living in China for 7 years and just recently came to Tangshan for work. They were extremely energetic and funny, and hopefully I will hear more of their story in the upcoming weeks.
One disappointing aspect of the school is that “We happy every day” is posted everywhere; it’s even built-in to the exterior of the school walls. Eddie told me that this could be due to the fact that the manager of the school is not a principal but a businessman who seems to value money more than a legitimate education. I just find it so counter-productive that these kids are trying to learn English in an environment that isn’t helping them do so. Learning English is already so complicated, but having wrong information literally posted all over schools (there have been similar signs in Aston, too) and teachers that are constantly saying and pronouncing really basic things incorrectly is really disheartening. I can deal with these mistakes on menus, in stores or anywhere really except an institution that is actually trying to teach a subject the correct way.
Lets see…you have been asking for pictures of the bikes and our dungeon of a bathroom, and I finally remembered to take both! Pictures of our city and apartment will be forthcoming. I wanted to give a shout-out to Jane, who skyped us on a whim last night, and it worked out! Also, to my extreme satisfaction, Joe Warren proved that reading our blog is not only entertaining but useful, as he used his newly gained knowledge about the Mandarin number 8 in trivia last night, go Joe! David and Eric also wanted me to mention that amazingly, David watched the Gtown basketball game LIVE last night on his computer. Shout out to technology!
As you may know, the Chinese celebrate Labor Day during the first week of May and National Day during the first week of October, which means that we will have at least a few additional days off from classes at that time. This also may mean that hotels and flights are more expensive, but could be a good time to visit!
I was very excited to find out today that there are TWO St. Baldrick’s events being hosted in Hong Kong this year! They are both in April and although I don’t think we will be able to take enough time off right now to make the events, I have started doing some research about getting involved with some more head shaving over here. (PS…check out www.stbaldricks.org if you haven’t already. My former co-worker Brooke Everhart will be going bald in Georgetown in one week, so please donate to her if you can: http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/mypage/participantid/374247) Also, St. Baldrick’s Charlottesville is still alive and kicking for its 5th year…and will host their event in 2 weeks: http://www.stbaldricks.org/events/mypage/eventid/3998/eventyear/2010)
I read about her passing on muslimmatters.org and I also recieved this forward about her achievements in the mail which I would like to share. We would like to say, Innaa lillaahi wa Innaa ilahi raji’un and ask Allah to forgive her and grant her the highest ranks in Paradise. We also ask Allah to give her family patience in these hard times.
Aminah assilmi is a renowned female scholar of Islam she travels around the United States to give lectures , her personal story has admired hundreds of individuals ,she is also President of International Union of Muslim Women , the organization that has many achievements under its belt.
“I am so very glad that I am a Muslim. Islam is my life. Islam is the beat of my heart. Islam is the blood that courses through my veins. Islam is my strength. Islam is my life so wonderful and beautiful. Without Islam I am nothing, and should Allah ever turn His magnificent face from me, I could not survive.” Aminah Assilmi
It all started with a computer glitch.
She was a Southern Baptist girl, a radical feminist, and a broadcast journalist. She was a girl with an unusual caliber, who excelled in school, received scholarships, ran her own business, and were competing with professionals and getting awards – all these while she was going to college. Then one day a computer error happened that made her take up a mission as a devout Christian. Eventually, however, it resulted into something opposite and changed her life completely around.
It was 1975 when for the first time computer was used to pre-register for a class in her college. She was working on her degree on Recreation. She pre-registered for a class and then went to Oklahoma City to take care of a business. Her return was delayed and she came back to college two weeks into the class. Making up the missed work was no problem for her, but she was surprised to find that the computer mistakenly registered her for a Theatre class, a class where students would be required to perform in front of others. She was a very reticent girl and she was horrified to think about performing in front of others. She could not drop the class for it was too late
Failing the class was also not a choice, for she was receiving a scholarship that was paying for her tuition and receiving an ‘F’ would have jeopardized it.
Advised by her husband, she went to her teacher to work out some other alternative to performing, such as preparing costumes, etc. Assured by the teacher that he would try to help her, she went to the next class and was shocked by what she saw. The class was full of Arabs and “camel jockeys”. That was enough for her. She came back home and decided not to go back to the class anymore. It was not possible for her to be in the middle of Arabs. “There was no way I was going to sit in a room full of dirty heathens!”
Her husband was calm as usual. He pointed out to her that God has a reason for everything and that she should think about more before quitting. Besides, there was the scholarship that was paying her tuition. She went behind locked doors for 2 days to think about. When she came out, she decided to continue the class. She felt that God gave her a task to convert the Arabs into Christianity.
Thus she found herself with a mission to accomplish. Throughout the class, she would be discussing Christianity with her Arab classmates. “I proceeded to explain to them how they would burn in the fires of hell for all eternity, if they did not accept Jesus as their personal savior. They were very polite, but did not convert. Then, I explained how Jesus loved them and had died on the cross to save them from their sins. All they had to do was accept him into their hearts.” They still did not convert, and so she decided to do something else: “I decided to read their own book to show to them that Islam was a false religion and Mohammed was a false Prophet”.
At her request, one student gave her a copy of the Qur’an and another book on Islam. With these two books she started on her research, which she was to continue for the next one and half years. She read the Qur’an fully and another fifteen books on Islam. Then she came back to the Qur’an and re-read it. During her research, she started taking notes that she found objectionable and which she would be able to use to prove that Islam was a false religion.
Unconsciously, however, she was changing from within which did not escape the attention of her husband. “I was changing, just in little ways but enough to bother him. We used to go to the bar every Friday and Saturday, or to a party, and I no longer wanted to go. I was quieter and more distant.” She stopped drinking and eating pork. Her husband suspected her of having an affair with another man, for “it was only for a man that a woman changes”. Ultimately, she was asked to leave, and she soon found herself living in a separate apartment
“When I first started to study Islam, I did not expect to find anything that I needed or wanted in my personal life. Little did I know that Islam would change my life. No human could have ever convinced me that I would finally be at peace and overflowing with love and joy because of Islam.”
Throughout these times, she continued studying Islam and although she was changing subtly from within, she remained a devout Christian. Then one day, there was a knock on her door. It was a man in traditional Muslim robe, who appeared to her as a “man in a long white night gown with a red and white checkered table cloth on his head”. His name was Abdul-Aziz Al-Sheik and he was accompanied by three other men in similar dress. She was very offended by Muslim men coming to her in nightgowns and pajamas. She was further shocked when Abdul-Aziz told her that he understood that she waited to be a Muslim. She replied that she was a Christian and she did not have any plan to become a Muslim. However, she had some questions to ask if they had the time.
At her invitation, they came inside. She now brought up the questions and objections that she noted down while she was researching. “I will never forget his name”, she said of Abdul-Aziz who proved to be a very patient and soft-mannered person. “He was very patient and discussed every question with me. He never made me feel silly or that a question was stupid.” Abdul-Aziz listened to every question and objection and explained it within the proper context. “He explained that Allah had told us to seek knowledge and questions were one of the ways to accomplish that. When he explained something, it was like watching a rose open – petal by petal, until it reached its full glory. When I told him that I did not agree with something and why, he always said I was correct up to a point. Then he would show me how to look deeper and from different directions to reach a fuller understanding.”
It would not be long before she would externally submit to what she had already been submitting to internally during the last one and half years. Later in that same day, this Southern Baptist girl would declare in front of Abdul-Aziz and his companions: “I bear witness that there is no god but God and Mohammed is His Messenger.” It was May 21, 1977.
Conversion to Islam, or to any other religion for that matter, is not always a simple thing to do. Except for a few fortunate ones, a new Muslim usually face consequences. The convert may face isolation from family and friends, if not pressure to go back to the family faith. Sometimes, a convert may even face sever economic hardship, as in the case of those who are asked to leave the house because of converting to Islam. Some converts are fortunate to continue to be well respected by family and friends, but most of them face minor to severe hardship especially during the first few years after the conversion.
But the difficulty that Aminah Assilimi had to go through and the sacrifice that she had to make for the sake of her conviction and faith is almost unheard of. There are few who could rely so much on Allah as she did, standing firm and meeting the challenges, making sacrifices, and yet maintaining a positive posture and influencing people around with the beauty of what she found and believed in.
She lost most of her friends, for she was “no fun anymore”. Her mother did not accept her becoming a Muslim and hoped that it was a temporary zeal and that she would soon grow out of it. Her “mental health expert” sister thought that she lost her mind. She attempted to put her in a mental health institution.
Her father was a calm and wise man. People would come to him for advice and he could comfort anyone in distress. But when he heard that his daughter became a Muslim, he loaded his double-barrel shotgun and started on his way to kill her. “It is better that she be dead rather than suffering in the deepest of Hell”, he said.
She was now without friends and without family.
She soon started wearing hijab. The day she put it on, she was denied her job. She was now without family, friends, and job. But her greatest sacrifice was yet to come.
She and her husband both loved each other very much. But while she was studying Islam, her husband misunderstood her for her apparent changes. She became quieter and stopped going to the bar. Her changes were visible to him and he suspected her of having affair with another man, for whom she must have been changing. She could not explain to him what was happening. “There was no way to make him understand what was changing me because I did not know.” Eventually he asked her to leave and she started living separately.
After she openly accepted Islam, it went worse. A divorce was now inevitable. This was a time when Islam was little known, much less understood for what it is. She had two little children whom she loved dearly and whose custody should have rightfully be given to her. But in a grave violation of justice, she was denied their custody just because she became a Muslim. Before giving the formal verdict, the judge offered her a harsh choice: either renounce Islam and get custody of the children, or keep Islam and leave the children. She was given 20 minutes to make a decision.
She loved her children very dearly. It is perhaps the worst nightmare that a mother can have: asked to willfully leave her child – not for one day, month, or year, but forever. On the other hand, how could she keep the Truth away from her children and live as a hypocrite? “It was the most painful 20 minutes in my life”, she said in an interview. Those of us who are mothers and fathers, especially of young children, little imagination is needed to feel the pain and torment that she must have passed every second in those 20 minutes. What added further to her pain was that according to doctors, she could never bear another child because of certain complications. “I prayed like I had never done before … I knew that there was no safer place for my children to be than in the hands of Allah. If I denied Him, there would be no way in the future to show my children the wonders of being with Allah.”
She decided to retain Islam. Her two dear children – one little boy and one little girl – were taken away from her and given to her ex-husband.
For a mother, is there a sacrifice greater than this – a sacrifice that is done for no material reason but only for faith and conviction?
“I left the court knowing that life without my babies would be very difficult. My heart bled, even though I knew, inside, I had done the right thing” . She found comfort in the following verse of the Qur’an:
There is no god but He,-the Living, the Self-subsisting, Eternal. No slumber can seize Him nor sleep. His are all things in the heavens and on earth. Who is there can intercede in His presence except as He permitteth? He knoweth what (appeareth to His creatures as) before or after or behind them. Nor shall they compass aught of His knowledge except as He willeth. His Throne doth extend over the heavens and the earth, and He feeleth no fatigue in guarding and preserving them for He is the Most High, the Supreme (in glory). (Quran 2: 255)
Perhaps the air of Colorado was too thin for justice. Or perhaps there was a plan in Allah’s greater scheme of affairs. Aminah Assilimi later fought back and took her case to the media. Although she did not get custody of her children again, a change was made in the Colorado law that one cannot be denied child custody on the basis of his or her religion.
Indeed Allah’s love and mercy engulfed her so much that, as if, she has been granted the touchstone of Islam. Wherever she goes, people are touched by her beautiful words and Islamic manners and become Muslim.
By accepting Islam, she became a changed person, and a much better person. So much so that her family, relatives, and people around her started appreciating her mannerism and the faith that brought about such changes in her. Despite her family’s initial reaction, she remained in touch with them and addressed them with respect and humility, just as the Qur’an enjoins the Muslims to do. She would send cards to her parents on different occasions, but she would always write down a verse from the Qur’an or the Hadith without mentioning the source of such beautiful words of wisdom. It was not long before she started making a positive influence among her family members.
The first to become Muslim was her grand mother. She was over 100 years old. Soon after accepting Islam, she died. “The day she pronounced Shahada, all her misdeeds had been erased, while her good deeds were preserved. She died so soon after accepting Islam that I knew her “book” was bound to be heavy on the good side. It fills me with such a joy!”
Next to become Muslim was her father, the one who wanted to kill her after she became Muslim. Thus he brought alive the story of Umar ibn Khattab. Umar was a companion of the Prophet who persecuted the early Muslims before he converted to Islam. When he heard one day that his sister became a Muslim, he went out with an open sword to kill her. But upon hearing some of the verses from the Qur’an that his sister was reciting, he recognized the truth and went straight to the Prophet and accepted Islam.
Two years after she (Assilmi) accepted Islam, her mother called and said that she appreciated her faith and hoped that she would keep it. Couple of years later, she called again and asked her about what one would need to do to become a Muslim. Assilmi replied that one had to believe that there is only One God and Muhammad was his Messenger. “Any fool knows that. But what do you have to do?”, she asked again. She replied that if that is what she believed, then she was already a Muslim! At this, her mother said, “Well … OK. But let’s not tell your father just yet”.
She was not aware that her husband (Assilmi’s step father) had the same conversation with her a few weeks earlier. Thus the two lived together as Muslims for years in secret without knowing that the other was also a Muslim. Her sister who wanted to put her in mental institution accepted Islam as well. She must have realized that becoming Muslim is indeed the most healthy and sound thing to do.
Her son, upon becoming adult, accepted Islam. When he turned 21, he called her and said that he wanted to become a Muslim.
Sixteen years after the divorce, her ex-husband also accepted Islam. He said that he had been watching her for sixteen years and wanted his daughter to have the same religion that she had. He came to her and apologized for what he had done. He was a very nice gentlemen and Assilimi had forgiven him long ago.
Perhaps the greatest reward for her was yet to come. Assilmi later married another person, and despite the doctors’ verdict that she could never conceive another child, Allah blessed her with a beautiful boy. If Allah (swt) makes a gift to someone, who can prevent Him? It was truly a wonderful blessing from Allah (swt), and so she named him “Barakah
The sacrifice that Assilmi made for the sake of Allah (swt) was tremendous. And so Allah (swt) turned in mercy to her and rewarded her with enormous blessings. Her family discarded her after she accepted Islam, and now by Allah’s mercy, most of them are Muslim. She lost her friends because of Islam, and now she is being loved by so many. “Friends who loved came out of nowhere”, she said. Allah’s blessings came upon her so much that wherever she goes people are touched by the beauty of Islam and accept the Truth. Both Muslims and non-Muslims now come to her for advice and counseling.
She lost her job because of wearing hijab, and now she is the President of the International Union of Muslim Women. She delivers lectures nationwide and is on high demand. It was her organization that successfully lobbied for the “Eid Stamp” and had it approved by the United States Postal Service, but it took many years of work. She is now working on making the Eid Day as a national holiday.
She has tremendous trust on Allah’s love and mercy and she never looses faith on Him. She was once diagnosed with cancer some years ago. Doctors said that it was in an advanced stage and that she would live for another year. But her faith in Allah (swt) remained strong. “We must all die. I was confident that the pain I was experiencing contained blessings.” As a brilliant example of how much one can love Allah, she mentions about a friend of her named Kareem Al-Misawi who died of cancer when he was in his 20’s:
“Shortly before he died, he told me that Allah was truly Merciful. This man was in unbelievable anguish and was radiating with Allah’s love. He said: “Allah intends that I should enter heaven with a clean book.” His death experience gave me something to think about. He taught me of Allah’s love and mercy.”
All praise is due to Allah, she continues to live in good health. She now thinks that having cancer was the greatest blessing that she ever had.
Following on from their sparkling debut at the Geneva motor show, Škoda Auto has announced prices for its new cars, the Fabia and Roomster models.
With fantastic new engines, a fresh face and a whole raft of technical refinements, both the Fabia supermini and Roomster MPV are even more attractive than ever. And being Škodas, both also represent great value for money, with the Fabia range starting at just £9,330 and the versatile Roomster from only £11,260 (all prices with 1st April Road Fund Licence inclusive).
The new look is most evident in the redesigned radiator grille and 3D-shaped headlamps, which have been considerably widened, highlighting the stronger horizontal line of the cars’ faces. This gives both Fabia and Roomster a more dynamic look, while losing none of the cars’ elegance and appeal.
Both cars also benefit from a new range of engines which includes four petrol and two diesel units, with power outputs ranging from 60bhp through to 105bhp. The vast majority of Škoda’s new engines benefit from direct fuel injection, while many feature turbocharging technology.
The result is a reduction of both fuel consumption and CO2 emissions as well as improved performance and refinement. Nowhere is this more apparent than when the new 1.2 TSI 105bhp petrol engine is combined with the optimised, two-clutch seven-speed DSG transmission. This delivers impressive power with excellent combined fuel consumption of 53.3 mpg and a CO2 emissions reduction of 56g/km to 124g/km (against the previous 1.6 105bhp Tiptronic). The four-cylinder 1.2 TSI engine is available in two power levels – 85 bhp and 105bhp. Both of these will also be available with a five-speed manual transmission.
All engines comply with EU5 emissions standards, with both 1.6 CR TDI units emitting less than 110g/km CO2.
Both Fabia and Roomster are available in S, SE and Scout specifications, while the Fabia line up also features Elegance trim level.
Fabia hatchback prices – all prices shown with 1st April Road Fund Licence inclusive.
Trim
Engine
CO2
OTR Price
S
1.2 6v 60bhp
132
£9,330
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£9,960
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£11,810
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£11,840
SE
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£10,775
1.2 TSI 85bhp
121
£11,375
1.2 TSI 105bhp
124
£12,025
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£12,725
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£12,755
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
109
£12,975
Elegance
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£11,900
1.2 TSI 85bhp
121
£12,500
1.2 TSI 105bhp
124
£13,150
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£13,850
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£13,880
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
109
£14,100
Fabia Estate prices – all prices shown with 1st April Road Fund Licence inclusive.
Trim
Engine
CO2
OTR Price
S
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£10,425
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£12,375
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£12,405
SE
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£11,570
1.2 TSI 85bhp
121
£12,170
1.2 TSI 105bhp
124
£12,820
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£13,520
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£13,550
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
109
£13,770
Scout
1.2 TSI 85bhp
121
£13,330
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£14,710
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
109
£14,930
Elegance
1.2 12v 70bhp
128
£12,695
1.2 TSI 85bhp
121
£13,295
1.2 TSI 105bhp
124
£13,945
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
124
£14,645
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
109
£14,675
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
109
£14,895
Roomster prices – all prices shown with 1st April Road Fund Licence inclusive.
Trim
Engine
CO2
OTR Price
S
1.2 12v 70bhp
143
£11,260
1.2 TSI 85bhp
134
£11,890
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
134
£13,250
SE
1.2 TSI 85bhp
134
£13,245
1.2 TSI 105bhp
134
£13,895
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
134
£14,605
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
124
£14,515
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
124
£14,735
Scout
1.2 TSI 85bhp
134
£13,890
1.2 TSI 105bhp
134
£14,540
1.2 TSI 105bhp DSG
134
£15,250
1.6 TDI CR 90bhp
124
£15,160
1.6 TDI CR 105bhp
124
£15,380
The new Fabia and Roomster are also available as lease cars
Renting a car while in Cabos makes a lot of sense, especially if you’re thinking of exploring the beautiful beaches on the Pacific coast or the old mining towns of San Antonio and El Triunfo. Having this in mind and aware of the going car rental rates we, at WhereInCabos, have partnered with U-Save Car & Truck Rental and can now offer the best rental rates in Los Cabos to our clients. You can either contact us to get a quote or call them directly and mention that you heard about them through WhereInCabos. For the month of March U-Save is offering a 3×2 and 5×7 special. Rent any car for 3 days and pay only 2 or if you’re staying longer if you rent a car for one week you pay only for 5 days.
U-Save Los Cabos offers you THE BEST rates in all of Los Cabos plus the most convenient check-in at the Los Cabos Airport. With U-Save you’re free to explore beyond Cabos thanks to the convenient drop-off service available in all of Baja. NOTE: Complimentary days are subject to tax and insurance fees. To contact U-Save you can either email us or call them directly to (624) 146 5083 or (624) 143 0914.
Day one, and we set out from York in Wesley (dad’s X-type) for our very long drive to the Scottish Highlands, more specifically Loch Duich, and a very lovely B&B (follow link), deep in the mountains about 25 miles south of the Skye Bridge.
We knew that there had been a bit of snow this winter, but we weren’t prepared for the full grandeur of the Highlands and for how cold it must have been all winter. Any water more than 100m above sea level was frozen, and the landscape resembled an Arctic wilderness.
8 hours and just under 400 miles later we pulled into the B&B near Loch Duich. This is an excellent winter location – at sea level, so accessible, just off the main road, and there’s a hotel near by which serves food all year round (we had only passed one other place in the previous forty miles). Also, the people were wonderfully friendly and the room excellent with one of the most comfortable beds I’ve ever slept in!
Day Two – Loch Duich to Eabost West (Skye) View Larger Map
The Cuillins from Elgol
Day two and the holiday really began. Breakfast at the B&B was of epic proportions, including huge sausages made from (ex)-highland cows. We then had a brief walk up the valley side to gain a better vantage point for photographs of some of the thirty Munros in the area (although we decided not to climb any ourselves). Following this, we set off in the car towards the Isle of Skye, via the Kyle of Lochalsh, stopping off on the way at Eilean Donan Castle (apparently Scotland’s most photographed). This is closed for visitors during winter, but free access is maintained to the castle exterior.
Over the Skye bridge, which is now free from tolls, from Kyle of Lochalsh to the Isle of Skye is only a short crossing, but I wasn’t prepared for the full majesty of the island, which boasts more peaks over 3000 feet than the whole of England. We took a scenic detour to Elgol (B) on map, to marvel at the view, and to have a cup of tea in the cafe which is open all year round. The road is fantastic, and well worth the detour. A quick trip to Portree (the capital of the island) to pick up some expensive diesel (tip: get it in Dunvegan instead where the petrol station also serves bacon rolls and excellent tea/coffee and is much cheaper), and then we crossed over the interior of the island to reach Eabost West (which may be gaelic for western email…), and our next lovely B&B. This has a wonderful view over the sea loch, and rooms come equipped with binoculars for looking at the seals and seabirds which abound. You could use them to pick out the neighboroughing buildings, which are few and far between.
Day Three – walk to the Old Man of Storr, and around Skye in general
View Larger Map
Old Man of Storr
In the morning, we ate another hearty scottish breakfast (dad had kippers which are available on request), and set off for a gentle stroll along our local lochside looking for seals. Despite a false alarm when I took a photo of a suspiciously seal-shaped shiny rock, no seals were to be seen this morning, although we did see a goodly selection of seabirds including cormorants, geese and (I’m pretty sure) oyster catchers.
We then set off on a driving exploration, including a visit to Trumpan church, which is a beautiful ruin with lovely views over the sea to the Outer Hebrides of Harris and Lewis (B on map). A drive via Portree to Loch Leathan (oddly enough larger than Loch Fada nearby), should have been simple, except for the one hour forty mile detour we had to take (see northern loop on map) to avoid two miles of closed road!!
We then set out for the walk up to the Old Man of Storr (pictured), which is a 49m high pinnacle of rock at about 550m above sea level. We were unlucky to be caught in mist and gentle snow for periods of the walk, but blessed by the breaks in the cloud which allowed the amazing views to be seen (it was a photo of this view that inspired the trip in the first place).
The upper slopes were deep in snow (feet deep in drifts in places), but the path was fairly clear at all points.
By the time we descended we were in need of some dinner, which turned out to be difficult – Dunvegan has numerous hotels but none were serving non-residents at this time of year. Fortunately one recommended the Stein Inn, which is in Waternish of the Trumpan road (very much at the end of the world), but which serves a lovely local menu of sea food and other favourites. Serves all year round, reasonably priced, with a log fire. Lovely.
Day Four – Seals and Journey to Harris
View Larger Map
Seals in Dunvegan Loch
This was to be another travelling day – with the Calmac taking us from Uig (oo-ig) to Tarbert on the Island of Harris in the Outer Hebrides. In the morning, however, we took at trip to Dunvegan Loch (B) and had a closer look at some of the seals which make it their home. We then travelled to Uig and boarded the Calmac. Even at this time of year, car bookings are to be recommended (if only for convenience). There were only about 12 vehicles on the ferry and it made for a lovely quiet journey over to Harris.
The entrance to the harbour at Tarbert reminds me of entering ports in Norway – it is deep within the sea loch, and the route in is tortuous, avoiding numerous skerries and other rocky dangers! All the time, we had a marvellous view of the mountains of Harris and back to those on Skye. It was also clear enough to see the even larger mountains of the mainland, which stretch away as far as the eye could see.
Tarbert provided another B&B with a lovely view (Tigh na Mara (Mrs Flora Morison)), and the Harris Bar provided lovely evening food, and a very nice Scotch coffee (for dad).
Day Five – Exploring Lewis, ferry to Ullapool, Kylesku Hotel and Scourie B&B
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Deer near Kylesku
Another day of travel – this time a quick road tour of the Isle of Lewis (the same land mass as Harris), including a trip to the furthest west we reached (58.2° N, 6.97° W), where i dabbled my feet in the Atlantic (B) – the beautiful white sand and blue green sea makes you think of the Med or the Caribbean, but the remnants of snow on the beach and water at less than 10°C reminds you that it isn’t!
We also made it by bridge to another skerry off the coast of Lewis (Bernera, C), which had yet more lovely views). From there it was an easy and quick drive to Stornoway (largest town we’d seen in a while) and the ferry to Ullapool. The crossing takes about 2 hrs 45 minutes, and we were blessed with a clear day, and the chance to watch the mountains of the north Highlands approach the whole length of the crossing. The last hour of the trip is entering the fjord that Ullapool sits within, and negotiating various rocky obstacles.
From there we drove north to Scourie (our destination for the evening), via a long scenic coastal detour (see loop on map), which takes about 20 minutes longer than you would perhaps like (it’s 20mph running a lot of the time), but which was rich in views of the Atlantic and with wildlife – there were deer everywhere. The deer are quite a hazard, particularly this year when there is little in the way of available vegetation and fresh water (too much snow and ice), and therefore if they’ve found grass near a road side they are not very inclined to get out of the way in a hurry.
Our evening meal involved our greatest find of the trip – the Kylesku hotel (D). This has new owners (including a French chef), and the new owners have already befriended Neil (the local fisherman), who provides them with the freshest seafood (I had mussels then spineys, which take some eating, and some getting over what they look like, but which are absolutely wonderful). The new owners have taken on a great task, since the hotel is down a side road, in a wonderfully beautiful location, but not good for passing trade. It is one to remember though, and well worth the trip if you are in the area, where excellent fresh local food, and good service are at your disposal. I should point out that it’s not just seafood – dad ate a venison burger, which was clearly local, handmade, and very fresh!
B&B in Scourie in the offseason is a little limited. The Scourie B&B where we stayed was excellent (the softest towels I’ve ever known), but a little pricey, since there is little competition at this time of year.
Day Six – The Journey home begins View Larger Map
The end of the road!
At this point we had to begin our journey home. The far north of Scotland to Oxford is the best part of 750 miles, so we broke the trip into segments – to Glasgow, to York, and then me back to Oxford. First though, just to make it a little more difficult, we set off northwards. At this time of year, the far north west (Cape Wrath) is not accessible – the boat/minibus combo required does not run, so we chose Droman head as the most north west we could get to easily. This is at 58.5°N, 5°W, and is considerably nearer to Bergen in Norway than it is to my house in Oxford! Having walked to the end of the slipway, and taken some pictures of a large sea-eagle, we set off via Kylesku (to take a picture), Ullapool (better than via Lairg according to locals) and Aviemore back to Glasgow.
We reached Aviemore in glorious sunshine, with the Cairngorms covered in masses of snow – I had never appreciated how many big mountains there are in the area, and how vast the scale of the area is.
Cairngorms
The journey continued onwards via the A86 to Fort William, and back along the A82 to the Etap hotel in Glasgow.
Day 7 – Back to York
This was a day of motorway driving, although a highlight was our snack brunch at the Llama Karma Cafe near Penrith.
External dimensions: overall length (inches): 177.4, overall width (inches): 69.1, overall height (inches): 57.9, wheelbase (inches): 103.9, front track (inches): 60.2, rear track (inches): 59.6 and curb to curb turning circle (feet): 17.1
Internal dimensions: front headroom (inches): 38.9, rear headroom (inches): 38.0, front hip room (inches): 53.7, rear hip room (inches): 52.2, front leg room (inches): 42.0, rear leg room (inches): 36.2, front shoulder room (inches): 54.9, rear shoulder room (inches): 54.0 and interior volume (cu ft): 94.6
Weights: curb weight (lbs) 3,005
Performance
Emissions: SULEV ( 7.7 annual tons of CO2)
Engine: 2.5L in-line 4 double overhead cam with VVT ( 9.7 :1 compression ratio ; four valves per cylinder)
Sometimes it’s just so hard to maintain a positive outlook, that I find myself wondering why. I wonder if anyone else stops during the day to ask themselves the question:
am I staying positive?
It’s a question I think we all should ask ourselves more often. I have two exams today, and my alarm didn’t go off (I probably hit snooze too many times) this morning. So the next time I woke up was 30 minutes before my first exam. Skipped breakfast, skipped shower, and basically skipped my whole morning routine, including pull-ups on the Iron Gym, and jumped out of bed, threw clothes on and ran out the door. I made it on time (barely) and sat to take the exam. I didn’t do as well as I had thought I would, although I could have prepared more. I finished the exam, and put my books into my locker. (Yes in University there are lockers…well for the College of Music anyway)
Next on my agenda was having to play some Piano and Trumpet compositions for a Group Piano class. Easy, most non-composers stick to quarter notes, half notes, whole notes. So I grabbed my trumpet, went into a practice room to warm up. Uh…where’s my mouthpiece? Oh, yeah, I left it at home! I was doing mouthpiece buzzing late last night, and guess I never put it back in the case. I’m supposed to play in TEN minutes…what am I going to do? So I think for a second, then opt to check in the instrument storage office to see if I can rent a mouthpiece for an hour…NEVER AGAIN. It’s obvious they don’t sanitize the mouthpieces after being used, and they just stuff them in a drawer full of a bunch of miscellaneous garbage like pens, pencils, cleaner, food wrappers. Whatever, I need it so, I get it. I play the compositions, and they were pretty much what I expected. Some where better than others, but it was clear that no one really spent a lot of time on them (even though it was just to show you knew how to transpose up a whole step).
Ok, I’m done for the day so I decide I want to go home and nap before my next exam, seeing how the morning was so hectic. I get to my car, and sure enough…the rear driver tire is flat. So I take it to Tire Kingdom, where I had my oil changed yesterday. They were supposed to rotate my tires, and it soon became obvious to me that they didn’t. They didn’t even make sure all the tires had equal pressure (do not go to Tire Kingdom on Ocala/Tennessee for any kind of servicing). So I take it to a small mechanic on Tharpe/Mission, he filled my tire up and checked all of them for FREE. Then he noticed that I was missing some screws in a panel underneath my car, and put some in for me for FREE. We talked about how I want to be a music professor. He seemed very educated and knowledgeable. We got into a discussion on the ancient Romans, and how they used to pair Music as part of their mathematics education systems. We talked about the state of the country, and he spoke to me about how freedom is a gift and a curse, especially in the United States. He said something that I wanted to remember, so I took a mental note. “In the U.S. we’re free, and that’s a great privilege. We’re free to succeed at whatever we want to do, and we’re free to fail at whatever we want to do. The only problem is, since everyone’s free, no one cares if you fail, as long as they are still successful.”
Food for thought. I will probably post some type of response to that statement this weekend.
So I wasn’t able to go home and nap. I decided on the next best course of action…to indulge myself in the glory of fast food, in order to quell the intense emotional state I was in after the preceding events. I went to Chic-fil-a (they didn’t invent the chicken sandwich, but they sure did perfect it…for fast food). I ordered a #1, Chicken Sandwich, Waffle Fries and a Drink (opted for Cookies ‘n Cream Milkshake). It was delicious, and I felt myself calm down a little. My day was still a disaster at this point.
So through a lapse of time, we end up here… I have one exam keeping me from Spring Break, and it’s in 60 minutes.
This is where I say I should have a positive outlook, and I do. There are many things to stay positive about, when I look at this day at the macro level. I didn’t have to pay for those repairs on my car (always a plus to get free stuff as a college student), I didn’t get into an accident because my tire was almost falling off, I had a great meal, and I’m going to take an exam on a subject and class that I enjoy very much, Film Scoring.
There are millions of things that could have happened to me today, I’m glad only a couple slipped into my path.
Tonight’s agenda:
-Voice recital
-Working on my Sonata for Trumpet and Piano
-Packing my bags
-Cleaning my room, doing laundry and cleaning the apartment.
ning around the internet you can find the strangest projects. This happen to be one of the wildest: working after an open source computer car “to take automotive computer technology to the next level“. I don’t know whether this project is linked to Mpeguino, but the sponsor page make me doubt it. Shall we wait for the true open source car, don’t we??
via [GeekMyRide] Tag Technorati: car, computer, opensource,
Got this new idea. Just thought I’d throw it out there and see what you all think.
Introducing iDash. The revolutionary auto device from Apple. Forget having to connect an iPod via cable to listen to music in your car. All you need is WiFi and iTunes and of course, a car!
When you pull up in your driveway, the songs, albums, podcast etc… you have checked in your iTunes automatically syncs to your iDash, just like MobileMe for an iPhone.
I figure you can have a small add on on your dash like GPS that connects to your radio OR you can have a complete deck replacement kit so you have an actual iDash where your old car deck was.
steps-
1-complete the car tyres
2-duplicate the car 5 times
3-transform the cars to give different look
4-make the track from original image
5-ap … car racing photoshop picture
The people that are going to buy our house. I can feel it in my water.
There’s just time to dash off a quick post before I run round like a mad woman beautifying, hiding evidence and generally making the place look desirable.
I’ve got more hight hopes than normal for this lot becasue the agent contacted us a few weeks ago to see if you would be prepared to doa part exchange for a house in Bacup..
“Bacup? *snort* I don’t think so.”
Anyway, against all odds they’ve managed to sell their house and are dead keen to get a look at ours. These are the ones who were desperate enough to want to come during the week when it was dark. I can feel it in my water, I tell you.
Funny. When we bought the new car I said to B, “just watch, as soon as we get a 4wD we’ll sell the house and won’t need it. What are we waiting for, get a new car bought!”
Since then we’ve had a positive stream (well, more like a trickle, really) of viewers.
N has indeed fallen on his feet on the job front. He’ll be leaving home next week to go and work in a live in job in Bolton in a hotel that’s just been taken over by one of his friends. Told you, once things happen, they happen quickly. We’ll sell this house today or I’ll eat my computer!!
On a less positive note: my 50th birthday is getting scarily close. People keep asking me what I’m going to do to celebrate it but I can’t work up any enthusiasm. Sticking my head in the sand and lying about my age seem to be favourite at the moment. Of course when you consider the other what the alternatives to reaching 50 are, I’ll take the birthday, thanks. Just don’t expect me to do it with good grace.
Forza Motorsport 3 caters for all kinds of gamers. The new difficulty options mean that inexperienced players can still enjoy taking part and even winning races by turning on all the assists, whilst the more seasoned players can reap the rewards of their expertise in the form of extra XP by turning off some assists.
The graphics for Forza Motorsport 3 are breathtaking! Cars are 10 times as detailed as Forza Motorsport 2 and are displayed on a resolution 4 times higher, when coupled with its beautifully high frame rate this makes for astounding visuals.
Cars are divided into classes based on their performance and you’ll earn a new one every time you level up by earning experience based on your performance every time you race. The new simulation engine is superbly accurate to real life and means that each class and even each individual car has its own unique feel.
The singleplayer ‘Season Play’ is very well done, with a calendar to show you your upcoming events which include fortnightly championship races and between these you choose which series you want to enter. This means that you’ll be racing more of the cars that you like and less of the ones that you don’t. As you progress through season play you’ll move up through the classes, racing faster and faster cars until you reach the highest levels of high-end motorsport.
Multiplayer, however is a letdown. You can’t race realistically or customize any of the settings or assists which means that there is nothing stopping other players from colliding with you, which can be infuriating. However, this is not the case when you drive in private races with your friends, so don’t let it put you off unless you wanted to by the game purely for the multiplayer.
With this post we’ll change speeds and look at one of the big expenses in life: your car. Using this one hot tip find out how you can maximize the payout from your next car purchase.
The secret: Lease Busters
I know what you may be thinking: That’s no secret, I’ve heard of LeaseBusters.com for a long time. If that’s true, why haven’t you used it yet?
For those who don’t know, LeaseBusters.com is a site where people in Canada who want to get out of their car lease connect with people who are looking for leases. The “lease sellers” post their car’s details, plus any other incentive (this is where it gets exciting).
Incentives are usually cash payouts of thousands of dollars. The savvy investor that you are (I know you’re savvy because you keep up to date on weblogs like this one), you realize that there are a number of benefits:
1. The cash
The cash that you get for taking the lease off of the lease seller’s hands can be immediately put towards any high interest creditcard payments. We all know that credit card debt is the silent killer, this money can help you fight back!
2. A shorter lease term
Aside from the cash, your lease term will be much shorter than the term usually allowed by the dealerships. The majority of leases on the site have fewer than 15 months on the contract. Plus, you still have the flexibility of re-upping once the contract is over; although it may be a better idea to check back with LeaseBusters.com and get a new lease with new incentives.
3. No start-up costs, potential deposit returns
Picking up someone’s lease is much cleaner than signing a new lease agreement. The previous leaser has paid all of the start-up costs, plus, any left over deposits would belong to whoever holds the lease when the deposit is due back.
Though there are many advantages, there are a few downfalls that you want to be aware of:
1. Be sure to check how many kilometers are left on the lease, and how much it costs/km if you surpass that level. One of the reasons why people try to get rid of the leases is because they drive so much that they’ll have to write a fat check to the dealership if they continue driving the car. If you drive fewer km/day then they do, you can benefit from their miscalculation when they signed the lease.
2. REMEMBER YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE for the condition of the car when you return it to the dealership. Be sure to have the car inspected before you buy it. Spending a few hundred dollars to get a complete diagnostic of the car, inside and outside, could save you thousands when you return the car to the dealership.
On a final note, I want to remind you that you CAN NEGOTIATE with people who have posted their cars on leasebusters.com. One thing that a lot of posters will accept is to pay for the car’s inspection: remember, be reasonable in your negotiations and you will end up on top.
There it is, a quick and simple way to save thousands, maintain supreme flexibility, and to have a new car every year. I’m always at your service via email, thanks for reading. Ares
It is official. The biggest causative agents for global warming all over the world are industrial and auto emissions. The situation is no different in Kerala as well. Kochi, the business hub of this state is infamous for its staggering number of vehicles that push through the bad roads, causing terrible traffic congestion and emissions. Cochin has one of the highest car densities in India, which is ten times more than the national average. Most of the vehicles on the city roads do not pass the emission standards and one can see thick plumes of dark smoke emanating from the tail as these vehicles of all shapes and sizes wait at the traffic signals! Blame it on adulterated fuel ( many drivers mix additives to petrol to increase the mileage!) or lure for profits- the fact is that the damage goes unnoticed!
flavour of park is home to actual film sets such as War of the Worlds, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Psycho and the TV show Desperate Housewives. With many rides including Jurassic Park water ride and The Mummy roller coaster, to name the better ones, combining the theme park and studio tour capped off a good day of entertainment. Worth a visit at $69 for the day.
tax dollars are being spent. We hired a car for LA to the tune of $80 to drive through, it’d be virtually impossible in the RV.
plus she said she’d pay me… Though I doubt it’ll be much but it’s something and as Tesco says; EVERY LITTLE HELPS 
